First ever build. Guidance needed.

[honeypuff]

Hello guys & girls, I've always had a love for computing, and gaming, but never really wandered into the build/overclock scene, and now I feel like it's time to venture. I'm pretty clueless here, so excuse me if I label something stupid, or suggest an upgrade that would totaly bottleneck. I'm looking for any help or pointers.

I suppose it's best to say what my current rig is boasting and go from there, so here we go.

Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3, I think that's right.

CPU - AMD Phenom II X4 965

RAM - 4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 401MHz ( Okay, this actually meant NOTHING to me. D: )

GPU - 1024MB GeForce 9800 GT

Okay, so I think that nails my current rig.
It's a fairly solid rig, never had any issues, but it's out dated.

So, here is what I was thinking about getting.

Case - Cooler Master Storm Trooper SGC-5000-KKN1 Gaming Case
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/cooler-master-cm-storm-trooper-black-full-tower-gaming-case-with-usb-30-w-o-psu

GPU - EVGA 2GB GeForce GTX 680 SC
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-680-sc-signature-2-28nm-pcie-30-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1097mhz-boost-1163mhz-cores-1536-2x-d
Is the 4gb one MUCH better?
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-evga-gtx-680-classified-28nm-pcie-30-6008mhz-gddr5-gpu-1111mhz-boost-1176mhz-cores-1536-dp-hdmi-

RAM - Cosair 16GB DDR3
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/vengeance-lp-memory-cml16gx3m4a1866c9b
I don't really understand RAM pricing. They all seem to be basically the same.
http://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer-hardware/all/memory-ram/240-quad-channel-(1800mhz-plus)

CPU - Core i5-3570K
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/29-4intel-core-i5-3570k-s-1155-ivy-bridge-quad-core-34ghz-5-gt-s-dmi-650mhz-gpu-6mb-smart-cache-34x-

Mobo - No idea.

Sorry this is all over the place. I've confused myself so much. Do I even need to upgrade it all? D:

 

[excella1221]

Your CPU is still acceptable, if you want to keep the AMD/Phenom build.
If that's the case, you'll need to change the RAM to DDR3 1600MHz, 8gb is also plenty unless you're doing some heavy workloads. May I ask what your OS is? Is it a 32-bit or a 64-bit?
Your GPU would benefit from an upgrade too.
Do you have any idea what your motherboard is?

 

[honeypuff]

Hello Excella,

The build is mainly for gaming with the best quality I can get.

I'm using W7 64 Bit.

As to my understanding the Phenom 965 is quite outdated now, and a lot better stuff floating about.

Mobo - Motherboard Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. GA-MA770-UD3 (Socket M2)

As for the GPU, I'm looking at getting a GTX 680, can't decide between 2GB or 4GB though? Is it really a noteable difference.

 

[excella1221]

Ah, alright let me help you get started. What's your budget?
The performance difference of the 670 and the 680 are too close that the price difference isn't worth it. Also, you only need more VRAM if you're running more than 1 monitor, so get the 2gb.

 

[honeypuff]

Budget is probably around £700, depends what I see.

So you reckon the 2GB 670 will be able to hold it's own on a maxed out 1920 x 1080?
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/2gb-evga-gtx-670-ftw-28nm-pcie-30-(x16)-6208mhz-gddr5-gpu-1006mhz-boost-1084mhz-cores-1344-dp-dl-dvi

I'm only running one screen, it is however a 42", if that affects anything.

 

[excella1221]

I see. The 670 should be able to handle that, albeit it would work harder than on smaller screens.
Are you open to AMD GPUs?
Also, what would this PC be used for?
Would you want everything to be from scan.co.uk or are you okay with other shops as well since some parts are cheaper than others.
I don't think £700 will make the cut, since just with the CPU, mobo, and the 670, it's already at least £580.

 

[honeypuff]

I'm open to anything, the reason I've limited myself so to speak is because I've never had AMD, so wouldn't know how to rate it.

Would that mean I'd need a new Motherboard?

 

[excella1221]

That's nice then.
Yes, you need a new mobo. Not because of the GPU, but because you'll be jumping to Intel CPUs.

I edited my previous post with more questions, I guess it was too late, sorry. But please do answer them.

 

[jtenorj]

I'm a little curious how you got a x4 965 on a am2+ mobo with ddr2(isn't the 965 am3/am3+ only with ddr3?). Also, is it a locked down 965 or a black
edition? is it a 140w tdp or 125w? If there's any chance it's a 125w 965BE, you could overclock a few bins on the stock cooler to x4 980 speed with nary
a voltage increase(the 770 chipset allows overclocking, right?). That would help reduce or eliminate any bottleneck you might get with a better card.

What is your current power supply? the 9800gt is a relatively low tdp card. Depending on the brand, model and rating of your psu, it may not be able
to safely handle the combo of your 965 and a more power hungry gpu. Also, 4GB of ddr2 should be alright for gaming atm. 8GB is better, but not really
needed(unless you have a bunch of chat windows, media players or multi tab browser windows open in the background). More info will help us help you.